Picture Book

The Sleeping Porch

When the intense heat drives young Brando to sleep on the porch, he is awoken around midnight by a cat from a nearby graveyard. Together, Brando and Graveyard Cat embark upon a rollicking adventure: leaping up to the rings of Saturn, visiting the Arctic seas, scaling cliffs and sliding down slopes. Brando is certain his journey with Graveyard Cat was just a dream, but finds that he can’t be entirely sure . . . This imaginative tale is perfectly complemented by Ian Wallace’s charming illustrations.

Dog Day

Ben and Ellie have a new teacher. But wait a minute – the new teacher is a dog named Riff! With Riff in charge, reading, writing, and arithmetic are abandoned in favor of lessons in barking, scratching, and digging holes – and Ben, Ellie, and their friends couldn’t be happier. Then Mrs. Pink, the principal, comes to check on the class. What will she think of their dog day? High-energy text and bright, graphic illustrations will make readers want to join the fun in this school-day romp.

The Snagglegrollop

When he asks for a typical pet–a dog, a cat–his parents say no, so Sam wonders, “How about a Snagglegrollop?” A what?! The next day Sam comes home from school with a strange-looking creature indeed! The Snagglegrollop eats an awful lot of food–and entire tubes of toothpaste, too. But it tells silly jokes and takes the family for wonderful weekend romps. They become very fond of it. Some nights, though, the Snagglegrollop just sits on the roof, staring at the stars. “It seems quite sad,” Sam thinks. Could it be that all it needs is the companionship of his classmate Emily’s Quibblesnuff?

My Brother Bert

Bert’s little sister knows that he loves to bring home pets and hide them in his room, and her curiosity about what is going on in there has been building and building. Finally she simply cannot wait any longer to check it out for herself. Inside, she discovers a zoo-worthy collection of animals tucked into every nook and cranny.

My Japan

A young boy, Yumi, discusses his life in Japan, describing his home life, food, a typical day at his school, summer vacation, transportation, holidays, the city, and systems of writing.

 

It’s A Secret

What if you were as small as your cat — and took off with him on a nighttime adventure? A gorgeously illustrated tale from the award-winning John Burningham.Every night Marie-Elaine’s cat, Malcolm, goes out, and every morning he comes back in and sleeps. “Where do cats go at night?” the girl wonders. So when she sees him at his cat door dressed to the nines, she begs to come along. And amazingly, Malcolm agrees — as long as she puts on her fancy clothes, gets small, and keeps it all a secret. With a whimsical story and breathtaking artwork, the acclaimed John Burningham takes us on an exciting night’s journey, braving hoodlum dogs and precarious climbs for a rooftop party that is cause for celebration indeed.

The Tsunami Quilt: Grandfather’s Story

On April 1, 1946, an enormous tsunami wave strikes Hilo, Hawaii, causing death and destruction. Even those islanders who are fortunate to have survived find their lives forever altered. Young Kimo loves his grandfather very much. They go everywhere together, sharing island stories and experiences. But there is one story his grandfather has yet to share and that is the reason behind their yearly pilgrimage to Laupahoehoe Point. Here, in silent remembrance, Grandfather places a flower lei atop a stone monument.

Featured in Volume VI, Issue 1 of WOW Review.

Zarafa: The Giraffe Who Walked to the King

Zarafa is a beautiful and gentle giraffe. The ruler of Egypt offers her as a gift to the king of France. She sails up the Nile by felucca, crosses the sea by brigantine and walks the last five hundred miles to Paris. People love it. And they love her, meeting and greeting her along the way, cheering her on. Afterward, the grateful French king places Zarafa in his own royal garden, where all of Paris comes to visit and love her.